ASMA36
Writer-Marc Guggenheim
Aritst-Patrick Olliffe
Although that Annual is yet another week of waiting for the climax of the ‘American Son’ arc it is a week worth waiting for. Guggenheim, a veteran television and Spider-Man writer, was given the reigns of the thirty sixth annual and he does a great job at bring our minds out of the realm of ‘Dark Reign’ and doses the reader with injections of shock and humor.
The story prologues with someone looking a lot like Peter Parker *cough* and the segues into a dinner between Peter, May and the Jamesons. As always, it’s great to see characters outside of the superhero element and when Peter is written correctly it almost always ends up golden. Fortunately for us Guggenheim just happens to be one of those writers who can really make the inner monologue and outer dialogue of Pete shine, defining the character as the lovable photographer we all know and love. There is just some really classic comedy is this issue, from the Hypno Hustler and Megan Fox name drops to the perversions of Peters outlook of his new cousins, Guggenheim really nails it for most the issue. Some of the jokes flop, the “bro” joke has been done, but it’s easily forgiven considering how funny the rest of the issue is. The story takes place in Boston and the accent and Boston jokes that abound make for a number of hearty laughs.
The actual back story of the issue is one that really spins readers for a loop. A villain Spidey has never seen before is claiming he’s a blast from the past but Pete just can’t figure out who he is. I don’t wait to spoil it for you, but spoilers, it turns out the Raptor is looking for a man he claims killed his family, a Mr. Ben Reilly. It’s really an interesting choice of a character to bring up now, in the middle of ‘Dark Reign’ and ASM #600, and it’s a great hook.
The art leaves the reader wanting more. It’s very Comic Books 101 and doesn’t really do anthing out of the ordinary but it isn’t ugly either. To be honest, I really hate the way Olliffe draws Peter Parker and he is the star of the comic so that’s a big factor. Also, a great looking cover from Olivier Coipel is worth a mention. The issue wraps up with a promise to continue sometime in Amazing Spider-Man but where exactly? Well we don’t know. Like I mentioned before, there is a lot going on in Spider-Mans life right now, but it’s a good sign when even amidst all that I’m still excited to see what happens with this story.
Rating:
-Ryanscribbles
Tags: amazing spider-man annual, amazing spiderman, asm, ben reilly, comic book reviews, comic books, comic reviews, comics, dark reign, marc guggenheim, Marvel, marvel comics, megan fox, olivier coipel, patrick olliffe, Spider-Man, spiderman
